


My Love Life's Not Your Damn Project!

by Bass_Line



Series: College AU [6]
Category: BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: F/F, Happy Birthday Ran, Happy early birthday Tomoe, Kaoru's a bigger disaster, Plant bondage is briefly mentioned, Ran and Yukina are fellow angst lovers, Ran's a disaster, Ran's love life is a trainwreck, The Christmas party is definitely trashed at the end
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-10
Updated: 2020-04-10
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:34:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 12,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23575480
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bass_Line/pseuds/Bass_Line
Summary: Four students, one project, a whole lot of disaster and gayness for Ran.
Relationships: Aoba Moca/Hikawa Sayo, Hanazono Tae/Wakana Rei, Hazawa Tsugumi/Hikawa Hina, Imai Lisa/Minato Yukina, Kitazawa Hagumi/Okusawa Misaki, Mitake Ran/Udagawa Tomoe
Series: College AU [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1306391
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	My Love Life's Not Your Damn Project!

**Author's Note:**

> I've finished this on 28 December 2019, and I've been waiting for Ran's birthday to roll around to publish this sucker. It's a bonus that Tomoe's birthday is so close to Ran's! 
> 
> I did my best to make this a trainwreck as much as possible, hopefully it's as disastrous as I hope. 
> 
> This follows closely after 'Fuwa Fuwa Dreamy Birthday' and before 'Yukina's Blazing Hot Romantic Dinner'.

"Okay guys, we _really_ need to start writing our story." Misaki groaned, cursing her luck for being in a group with Ran, Yukina and Kaoru. It wasn't as if she hated them, it was due to the simple fact that their personalities clashed. Most notably Ran and Yukina, who were busy wrestling with each other on the floor. "Minato-san, stop cheating on Lisa-san and focus. You too Mitake-san."

"You say that, but we all know that none of us know how to write a story." Ran replied, with Kaoru's hand shooting up into the air. "Seta-san, just because you've attended devised drama mods doesn't make you a good writer."

"And you also have to repeat this writing module." Yukina quipped, a rare smile ghosting her face. Misaki wanted to point out that Yukina was also repeating that particular module, so she wasn't in any place to comment about Kaoru. "But yes, we really should start our project."

"Maybe we should a story about our interests?" Kaoru suggested, the most helpful thing that Misaki had heard all day. Or rather, the most productive thing Misaki had ever heard from their three discussion sessions. The rest nodded, agreeing to Kaoru's suggestion. "Alright, what should we write about?"

"I want to write a story that has lots of drama. For example, there's an insane amount of tension between the characters and there's flashbacks from each of their POV regarding the incidents that caused the tension. Or led to the eventual tension, I'm flexible on that part." Ran started off, soon describing all sorts of scenarios for a possible drama story. Misaki shuddered, five seconds in and the conversation resembled more of a soap opera than a story written by four college students. "In case a certain idiot doesn't know, POV refers to point of view."

"Ran, don't underestimate Yukina!"

"She meant you Seta-san, and did you seriously imply that I'm stupid?"

 _'Well, nothing can top that. Both idea wise and convo wise.'_ Misaki thought to herself as she nodded once Ran was done explaining her ideas. She then glanced over to Yukina, signalling that she should give her input. _'Let's hope Minato-san has better ideas…'_

"How about we scrap whatever Mitake-san had just said? We should write about someone who has lost everything and is trying to navigate the world around them, but fails miserably as they realised that the world has changed while they were trying to grapple with their losses? Or we could write about how the protagonist lost their significant other to suicide and delve into how not just the protagonist but also their friends deal with the death. We can even throw in mental illnesses and a friend's unrequited crush towards the protagonist if all of you think that it's not depressing enough."

"What is _wrong_ with you two?! Can you guys go, like, without some angsty bullshit for once?!" To think Misaki had pinned her hopes on Yukina, she should've expected this outcome from the leader of a J-rock band who was usually dressed in gothic attire. Sure, they looked good, but Misaki hoped that their minds weren't gothified. "One of you has repressed high school bullshit, and the other one is the personification of angst!"

"Oh yeah? What's _your_ idea?" Ran challenged, irritated that Misaki accused her of having issues with school life. Yukina nodded, why was she described as the personification of angst? That was Ran, not her.

"I want to write a mystery, I haven't thought about the specifics but yeah. Though I was thinking of a murder at somewhere… like in a school and the murderer is amongst them. Then the protagonist has to find out who was present during the time the victim was murdered and will be left with themselves, their best friend who stayed back for club, their rival in academics, the student council president and maybe a teacher? If you guys want I'm sure we can work in some romance and have a love interest as a suspect?"

"... So, like the game 'Misao'?" That was the first thought that Ran had and judging from Yukina's expression, she most likely had the same thought. Misaki sputtered, did they seriously think that she ripped the idea from a game? "I'm pretty sure there's something called copyright."

"Wh- no! I've never even heard of that game before!"

"It sounds complicated."

"Minato-san, you're one to talk. You literally wanted the protagonist to suffer! You might as well merge your ideas with Mitake-san's! The protagonist lost everything and while their friends changed, they remained the same as they can't move past their loss which resulted in tension between them and the friends who still wanted to maintain a relationship with them!" Misaki exclaimed, slamming her fist onto the table. Ran and Yukina gave each other a look, with Misaki being able to see the gears in their head whirring about at an incredibly rapid rate. "No! Don't _actually_ combine your ideas together!"

"I also have a genre that I want to do." Misaki sighed in relief, thank god for Kaoru. Knowing her, she would suggest something sappy but at least it would be kid-friendly. Not that it had to, but Misaki wanted to read something fluffy once they submitted the project to their lecturer. "I want to write something fleeting."

"... Of course you do." What did she even expect from Kaoru, of course it had to be fleeting. "Y'know what, let's throw out genres that we _don't_ wanna write."

"Definitely science fiction." Ran instantly replied, she never understood the appeal of sci-fi. Even that blockbuster movie featuring numerous laser swords (Moca insisted that they were lightsabres) and explosions in space didn't appeal to Ran. If anything, she was more confused. Yukina nodded fervently at Ran's passionate reply, indicating her agreement towards the view. "You too Minato-san?"

"I fail to see how people enjoy a world with unrealistic technological advancements."

"The haunting dominance of machines is something I would prefer to not be reminded of. Why, it's akin to a rose withering alone in a scrapyard." No one understood Kaoru's analogy, but they got the implication that she wasn't a fan of sci-fi. That suited Misaki perfectly, she didn't like the genre much.

"Okay, all of us don't wanna do sci-fi. That's great." Misaki said as she started up her laptop, her fingers typing away on the keyboard at a speed that Yukina could only dream of. "I'm setting up a random generator with all the genres that I could think of."

"What are the options Misaki?"

"I've put down our names as options because it's too hard to simplify them to a specific genre."

"Yours is literally just a ripoff mystery…" Ran started, but decided to shut up after Misaki glared at her with her pale grey eyes. The lack of energy in her dull eyes got Ran to stop talking, and instilled guilt in her. "Any others?"

"Yeah, I've inputted comedy too." Misaki replied, tapping rapidly on the 'enter' key. "Alright, it's spinning."

"I still don't understand how are we going to write something fleeting." Yukina expressed her point by crossing her arms while scowling at Kaoru. "What are the chances of getting her idea as our genre?"

"20 percent you idiot."

"About that percentage…" Misaki trailed off, horror forming on both Ran's and Yukina's faces as they realised what Misaki wanted to say. "The good news is that I interpreted her suggestion to something more understandable…"

"And the bad news?"

"... We're writing a romcom."

* * *

"Those bitches have the gall to go ahead with a romcom!" Ran was currently cursing at Tsugumi, her current conversational partner for the day. It had been two days since they've decided on the genre, and now they had to start brainstorming about the content. Needless to say, it was an impossible task for Ran. "How the hell does a romcom even work?"

"Add in romance and comedy! You can't go wrong with that!" Tsugumi replied cheerfully, though the glare sent her way dimmed her smile. "When is the next discussion?"

"No idea, we're texting for now." Ran shrugged, the group chat has been quiet ever since their last discussion. Which… did _not_ end well considering that she tried to strangle Kaoru. Yukina was lucky, she got to kick the Theatre major a few times before getting restrained by Misaki. "Okusawa-san even called my idea 'repressed high school bullshit'. This is coming from the person who ripped off a horror game!"

"I'm sure she couldn't have known…?"

"Whatever, at least her ripping off games is better than her roommate. She invented plant bondage." Ran shuddered, her phone vibrating on the table seconds later. "That better not be my group…"

**[Super Fucked Lit Team]**

_**[2.15 PM]** _

**Mii-kun:** hey guys we need to talk abt our romcom

 **Haka-no:** you say that my dear but none of us are well versed about love!

 **Yukinya:** But Okusawa-san's dating Kitazawa-san and god it's tooth-rottingly sweet

 **Yukinya:** I heard about how she was Okusawa-san's present yesterday

 **LitFlower:** You're dating Lisa-san though

 **Mii-kun:** actually friends to lovers is a good trope

 **Yukinya:** May I remind all of you that Lisa and I started off as friends with benefits?

 **LitFlower:** Yeah, how tf did that even happen when you two are literally those shoujo mains?

 **Yukinya:** As what Lisa had taught me, TLDR

 **LitFlower:** Okay no, that's not what it means

 **Mii-kun:** lisa/yukina started off as childhood friends then friends with benefits

 **Mii-kun:** happy?

 **Yukinya:** Yes

 **Mii-kun:** ok back to project we rlly need to start

 **Mii-kun:** i had the idea of using kanon/kaoru as the main pairing

 **Haka-no:** i wasn't consulted about this!

 **Yukinya:** I don't mind, but their relationship is non-existent

 **LitFlower:** The idea of making two painfully shy idiots try to woo each other sounds good

 **Mii-kun:** kanon isnt an idiot

 **Haka-no:** agreed!

 **LitFlower:** Fine, one idiot and one soft girl

 **Mii-kun:** much better

 **Haka-no:** am i allowed to veto this idea?

 **LitFlower:** Unless you can offer a better one…?

 **Haka-no:** ran and tomoe

 **Yukinya:** SOLD

 **LitFlower:** WHAT NO

 **Mii-kun:** we r wasting too much time so lets go with ran/tomoe

 **Yukinya:** Great, we've settled the pairing and we should discuss about the content soon

 **Haka-no:** Ah… what a fleeting thought…

 **LitFlower:** I QUIT

 **Mii-kun:** do tht n we wont include u in the marking sections

 **LitFlower:** I HATE YOU

"Gah! I hate my group!" Ran exclaimed as she resisted the urge to throw her phone to the ground, her father had finally bought her a new phone after months of subtle begging. Tsugumi flinched as Ran re-entered her tirade of curse words, with each one being more creative than the last. "Fuck them! Who are they to use me and Tomoe for a stupid grade?!"

"B-But Ran-chan, if they don't you'll be forced to retake this module next year."

"FUCK."

* * *

"Alright guys, first we need to start with the setting. How do we want the characters to meet?" Misaki asked, chugging down a large mug of coffee in order to keep herself awake. Yukina's eyebrow twitched, she had just made Misaki's share seconds ago. She wasn't planning on intruding on Moca's and Sayo's nightly dates in the dorm kitchen, she had received warnings from Hina that they weren't exactly boiling water in there.

"Why not somewhere fleeting?"

"Be more specific Kaoru-san."

"Childhood friends that have moved away but reconnected again years later!" The rest nodded, it was actually a decent idea. Not like they could afford to be picky, they were just four college students who had some skills in creating literary stuff. Ran wasn't fully on board on the idea, but that was mostly because the main couple was supposed to be about her and Tomoe. "I was thinking of reuniting in college!"

"That's great, we all can relate to college. Next… hmm… let's just base their personalities off Mitake-san and Tomoe-san. Their personalities seem to be quite popular in stories."

"Actually…" Yukina trailed off, earning the attention of her three partners. "I was thinking that instead of reuniting right from the start, one of them happens to see the other person by chance. Then while they obsess over how to talk to them, the second person notices them then and starts a conversation."

"If we're going with Minato-san's idea, then Mitake-san should be the one obsessing over how to approach Tomoe-san. It fits your personality anyway." Misaki agreed, her fingers typing across the keyboard. Ran groaned, as much as she wanted to protest against the idea, it was really a decent one. The fact that she didn't want to repeat the module was another motivating factor in her silence. "Now what kind of event should we create?"

"Why not the Ikemen Girls Contest?" Kaoru suggested, being the most productive member so far. Which came as a huge shock, considering that Kaoru usually spoke in… well, Kaoru. "I'm participating in the contest at the behest of the little kittens and I'm fairly sure that Tomoe has signed up."

"She _what_?!"

"Ooh yeah, I signed Tomo-chin up without her knowing." Moca explained, entering the discussion with a mug of coffee for Misaki. Sayo followed out, her teal hair slightly dishevelled in contrast to her usual neat appearance. "Didn't Tsugu mention this to you?"

"No she didn't, and why did you sign Tomoe up without her permission?!"

"... I kiiiiiiinda wanna give ya a push because you thirsting for her is getting cringy." Moca shrugged, avoiding a mug to her head. "Like, it was cute at first but now it's just sad. Even Lisa-san has more game than you, and that's saying a lot."

"When's the contest?" Misaki asked, ignoring Moca's teasing. She really wanted to sleep, and if it meant sleeping on their cluttered floor then so be it. Her roommate cleaned their dorm room almost every day, so it was probably fine if she just slept on the floor.

"Next week. Misaki, does this mean that you'll come and support me?"

"Not really, I can get Kanon-san if you want support though." Kaoru blushed, unable to reply coherently as a result of Misaki's offer. "Apart from these two, any other participants?"

"There's my beloved coffee baby, Hina-san, and a few other NPCs." Moca replied, getting herself smacked on the head by Sayo. "Owie~"

"Don't call people that you don't know NPCs." Sayo lectured, with Moca grinning in response. She sighed, why did she love Moca? "Anyways, if you need more material for your project, there's the Elegant Girl Contest next month."

"... Why do we have so many contests?"

"I have no idea Minato-san, but if this can help us write a story then I'm all for signing Mitake-san up."

"Do I _seriously_ get no say in this?!"

* * *

"Really? Glow sticks are allowed at this event?" Ran asked as Moca handed her a few LED sticks to cheer Tomoe on. Moca nodded, she had checked the guidelines and for some reason, glow sticks were _encouraged_ at the event. They spotted Tomoe at a corner, tugging on the collar of her costume. "Oh, Tomoe. Good luck out there."

"Haha! Thanks for coming Ran, it really means a lot!" Tomoe smiled nervously, she still wasn't comfortable with the idea of going up on stage and be cool (even though Moca assured her that she just needed to be herself). "As for Moca… you little shit, why didn't you tell me about this?!"

"Hey, Hii-chan had the job of telling you." Moca shrugged, not her fault if Himari had forgotten to tell her while squealing over how devastatingly handsome Kaoru was in her white tuxedo. Tomoe sighed, she really needed to talk to her best friend about being obsessed with Kaoru. "Anyhoo, I'm gonna root for my GF so yeah rely on Ran 'kay?"

"Is Tsugu not coming?"

"Her Financial Literacy class got moved to 15 minutes ago and it's a four hour thing so yeah…" Tsugumi was disappointed that she couldn't support her friends (especially her girlfriend), but Moca had promised to record down the whole contest even if it meant starting a war. Of course as the peace-loving girl she was, Tsugumi had begged Moca to not start any fights. "This is why I brought _so_ many juicers, like I ain't kidding 'bout the babies I brought."

"... Urgh, just don't do anything to embarrass me. Or Sayo-san for that matter." Tomoe relented, shooing away Moca. Ran wasn't sure if she should stay, but Tomoe seemed to enjoy her presence so that probably meant something. "Hey Ran? I heard that you're entering the Elegant Girl Contest."

"Yup, only for my project though."

"Do you mind if I come cheer you on then?" Ran would've seen the noticeable blush on Tomoe's cheeks had it not been for the dim lighting in the corner they were in. Instead, Ran scoffed at Tomoe's question. "Is that a no?"

"Why do you even have to ask? Of course I want you there." Ran may not be able to see well, but she could make out Tomoe flashing her a wide toothy grin. As much as Ran wanted to continue the conversation, she had to go find Misaki and Yukina. Plus Tomoe had to get ready backstage soon, so all the more she had to end the conversation. "Tomoe."

"Yeah?"

"Win." With that, Ran made her way towards Misaki and Yukina. It was hard, considering that they were at the front and there were at least a hundred swooning girls in the crowd. It was so bad, that Ran nearly drowned in the sea of squealing fans. "How did you two get to the front?"

"Never mind that, are you ready to become the protagonist of a shitty romcom made by the four of us?" Misaki asked, shielding her eyes from the bright spotlight that signalled the start of the event. "By the way Minato-san, what was Ran supposed to do in your idea?"

"You better not use my name for the final piece." Ran warned, she would throw a fit if she found out that their project used her name. Yukina pondered for a moment, a serene smile slowly forming on her face. _'Oh I don't like this.'_

"She's in a gay panic after seeing how attractive Udagawa-san is on stage."

"Yeah, no. Go shove that idea up your ass."

* * *

"Um… I heard from Himari-chan that you were cheering loudly for Tomoe-chan?" Ran wanted to die, she couldn't believe that she yelled Tomoe's name when she appeared. She even went as far as to use one of the sticks Moca had given her to fend off a 'batshit crazy' (Misaki's words) Kaoru fan. After that, she proceeded to cheer her on as though they were at a live. It was so embarrassing, Ran wanted to change her name and flee Japan altogether. "A-At least Tomoe-chan won! It must be because of you Ran-chan!"

"Save it. Your girlfriend was laughing her ass off up on stage." That was also true, Hina found the sight so funny that she had to laugh at Ran during the contest. In a way, that helped Tomoe to win as she promptly tackled the cheerful girl to the ground (really just the stage) which scored very well as evident from the judges' scores. "I want to die."

"Oh, Ran! Thanks for cheering me on last night, I couldn't have made it through without you!" Tomoe had approached them, unaware that Ran was still in denial over how she had basically threw her dignity away just for the damn project. Yukina insisted that it was all Ran, for she had never once mentioned that she had to take it as far as what she had done. "Tsugu, you've should've been there! It was seriously wild!"

"Yeah, Moca-chan sent me a video…" Tsugumi muttered her breath, avoiding Ran's shocked face by tilting her head away from her friend. Tomoe didn't notice, and was smiling in Ran's direction.

"I can't _wait_ for you to elegant the fuck outta the competitors! Hell, I think I'm gonna cheer you on with those digital glow sticks and use 'em like a lightsabre!"

"W-Wait a minute Tomoe-chan?! Can we talk about it first before using them as lightsabres?!" Tsugumi panicked, this wasn't how she wanted Afterglow to be more well-known. She was thankfully saved by Sayo and Hina, who approached them with their food trays. "Ah! Sayo-san and Hina-san!"

"Udagawa-san, please don't cause a public nuisance at the upcoming event." Sayo warned, the last thing she needed was to watch Tomoe getting herself dragged out of the venue while screaming and kicking. She had to physically restrain Tomoe from hitting Hina, as much as Hina probably deserved it. "Though Mitake-san, I'm surprised that you've decided to enter the Elegant Girls Contest."

"Yeah well, I was forced to…" Ran sighed, at least Misaki was upfront about signing her up for the event. That placed her in a better position than Tomoe, who didn't hear anything from Himari _or_ Tsugumi. Speaking of the keyboardist… "Tsugumi, why didn't you tell me about Tomoe and the contest?"

"I-I wanted to! But… you were venting out your frustrations regarding your project so I decided to not bring it up…" Tsugumi trailed off, omitting that the real reason was because she didn't want Ran to throw an _even_ bigger fit when she found out that her crush was entering a contest and would be drooled over by almost the whole female college population. "Sorry…"

"Okay no, you've nothing to apologise for Tsugumi."

"That's right Tsugu, you don't hafta apologise!"

"Yeah, but I kinda wanna hear a sorry from you Tomoe-chan…" Hina mumbled, cradling her left cheek after Tomoe had managed to land a punch on her before getting pulled away from Sayo. "It's still an owie y'know…"

"Why the hell do I need to apologise when you laughed at Ran for cheering me on?!"

"She reminded me of how earnest Aya-chan is back when she first started!" Hina protested, all she did was to laugh at something funny, what was so wrong with that? "It was hilarious!"

"Oh my god Hina, shut up before I kill you before Udagawa-san does."

* * *

"You guys are the worst." Misaki nodded as she typed the details of the contest into a document containing their story. Kaoru gave Ran a charming smile, but that little to ease her resentment towards Misaki and Yukina. Yukina was unfortunately (or fortunately in her case) unable to attend their discussion as she had band practice that day. "Please tell me you didn't write about how I acted like a fuck up last night."

"Nope, I just wrote that you were gawking like a lovestruck fool."

"Isn't it a bit too fast to move on to the romance stage?" Ran asked, this wasn't how she expected the story to go. Were romcoms always this fast-paced? Misaki shook her head in response, which further unsettled Ran. "You sure? Because as much as I don't like this, I don't think this sudden development works…"

"What? No, I meant that I'm not making you fall in love with Tomoe-san yet. Like what you said, it's too fast and unlike movies, we have more than two hours to write about your love story."

"... I should've kept my mouth shut."

"By the way my dear Ran-"

"Please don't talk to me like that Seta-san."

"-what are you wearing for the event?" Ran blinked, weren't costumes provided for the event? As if sensing Ran's worries, Kaoru immediately reassured her with a calm smile. "Oh no, costumes are provided for the event. However, due to the nature of this particular event, participants are required to state what option would their costumes be in."

"I picked Eastern for her, makes sense she's the heir to that ikebana school of hers." Misaki immediately replied, not skipping a beat. Yukina had agreed with her, it was hard to imagine Ran in anything but a kimono. "Of course, you have to choose what colour-"

"Definitely black with a red pattern."

"Wow, you're more excited than I expected." Misaki remarked, causing Ran to blush. It wasn't that she was looking forward to the event, but rather she was looking forward to see Tomoe cheering her on. Misaki noticed the subtle change in Ran's expression, but chose to say nothing. "Okay guys, how should we make them meet again?"

"Hmm… since Ran's participating in the event, we can always make Tomoe appear at the event as part of the audience no?"

"Building on Seta-san's idea, we can always throw in a girlfriend for not-Tomoe." Ran suggested, to which Misaki noted it down immediately. "Now the only concern will be _who_ should not-Tomoe's girlfriend be?"

"How about one of your competitors? It gives us a reason to make her part of the audience."

"Great idea Okusawa-san, but who? Also, are we making her the bitchy type or the Tsugumi type?"

"As much as I don't wish to hurt anyone, even fictional kittens, I think it would be best if we choose someone that isn't as likeable as Ran."

"Oof, there aren't many girls that are worse than Mitake-san."

"Bitch, if you aren't my partner for this fucking project, I would've killed you by now." Said girl scowled at the DJ, who stuck out her tongue as she continue typing the story. "Threats aside, how are we going to make not-Tomoe's girlfriend bitchier than me?"

"We can always observe the bitchy people in our lives. For example, Kaoru-san can always observe Shirasagi-san."

"Oh my, I don't think I'll feel comfortable knowing that Kao-chan will be staring at me all day." The girls nearly jumped out of their seats upon realising who the voice belonged to. How long had she been there, and did she hear about them stating that she was on the bitchy list? "Surely there are others besides me?"

"H-How long have you been listening Chisato?" Chisato said nothing, an innocent smile plastered on her face as she approached them. It was perfectly normal, excluding the fact that they were doing the project in a pitch dark living room and that made it scarier. "... Hold on, you don't live here."

"I believe it was when Misaki-chan mentioned observing people?" They gulped, afraid that Chisato had taken Misaki's words completely out of context. From the way Chisato still had a menacing smile on her face as well as how she ignored Kaoru's later comment, Misaki's words were indeed taken out of context. "Are the three of you prepared?"

"Wait!" Ran yelled, holding her hands out like what they do in movies. "Spare me! Do whatever the hell you like with these two clowns but leave me out of this!"

"Fuck you Mitake-san, don't complain when I 'forget' to include you in the marking component!"

* * *

"Here's the list of participants." Yukina held up a piece of paper and handed it to Ran, who accepted it warily. "Don't look at me like that."

"No, I'm actually cautious about the paper. I don't want to look at it and see that I have stiff competition." Ran replied, glancing through the list of participants. Most of them were women that she didn't know, which didn't give Ran any insight to how competitive the event would be. Her eyes stopped at three particular names, all listed at the same spot on the paper. "Fuck. I have stiff competition."

"Why?" Yukina asked as she peered at the list, scanning for the area that had Ran worried. On the list were Chisato's and Sayo's names. "Huh, I didn't know Sayo signed up for another event."

" _That's_ your concern?! Not the fact that I'm going to get myself wiped by Shirasagi-san?!"

"Okusawa-san didn't mention that the aim was for you to win though?" Ran grumbled, sure that was indeed not the aim… but since she was already forced to participate might as well bring home the gold medal right? "Besides, I'm helping you."

"How?"

"Rinko's also participating." Ran immediately scanned through the list a second time, eventually locating Rinko's name at the bottom left corner of the paper. "I signed her up to give you moral support."

"... You signed up someone who suffers from social anxiety?! Minato-san, you're absolutely out of your mind!" Ran couldn't believe it, who in the right mind would sign up someone who didn't deal well with crowds? Apparently Yukina was one of them, for she didn't seem to be the least bit concerned about Rinko. "No wonder Sayo-san signed up for this event, she probably wanted to give Shirokane-san support!"

"Minato-san, just what were you thinking when you signed Shirokane-san up for the event?!" Sayo questioned, having listened to the conversation for some time. Ran raised an eyebrow, she was expecting Moca to latch on Sayo like the leech she liked to describe herself as. How long had it been since Moca had a life of her own? "Mitake-san, could you move? You're blocking the coffee sachets."

"I thought this is a good way to help her. After all, a leader needs to give their fellow members a push in order to improve right?"

"I'm pretty sure putting her on display isn't the way to go. I had to sign myself up just to calm Shirokane-san down." Sayo sighed, Yukina was more sadistic than she thought. "How's this supposed to help your project again?"

"We're writing a romcom featuring Mitake-san and Udagawa-san. It's going to be as what Aoba-san would say, 'lit as fuck'."

"Urgh, don't let my girlfriend corrupt you Minato-san. I don't wish to explain to Imai-san how did you end up as a troll should that happens." Sayo shuddered, she should probably do something about Moca. Perhaps asking Tsugumi to keep an eye on Moca would suffice. Ran grimaced, not even she would wish such a fate on her rival. Getting Moca-fied was the worst thing that could happen to anyone that wasn't Moca. "Have you decided how the ending should be?"

"Okusawa-san said that it was a toss up between ending the scene in bed or at a wedding."

"Why are those two my only options?!"

"Because it's funny and also because she hasn't really watched romcoms."

"I'm letting someone who hasn't watched a romcom write one?!" Ran was horrified, she couldn't believe that she placed faith in Misaki. Which, in hindsight, was a terrible idea since she basically allowed Yukina to create the plot. "Can't a girl ask for a nice happy ending with Tomoe?!"

"We're already way past that Mitake-san." Yukina countered, patting her rival's shoulder mockingly. Ran scowled, resisting the urge to strangle Yukina right there and then. "If you really want such an ending, go make one."

* * *

"Ran, a prince wishes to talk to you." Kaoru declared, stepping aside to reveal Tomoe, who was holding onto a few LED glow sticks. Ran cringed, she didn't know which was worse, hearing Tomoe being called a prince or seeing that said prince would cheer her on with glow sticks. "I'll leave you two to it."

"I love how you tied up your hair Ran." Tomoe started, running her hand through her auburn hair carelessly. She wanted to play it cool around Ran, but the embarrassed blush on her face as she processed the compliment was enough for Tomoe to break down into a nervous wreck.

"I-It's the same as always. But… thanks." Ran muttered, resisting the urge to touch the dyed part of her hair. She spent hours on her hair, and she wasn't going to ruin it. She wondered why did Kaoru insist on her wearing her personal hair ornaments, not like it would help her win anyways. Her father was so delighted that she would be wearing the hair ornaments that he even called her to wish her luck, which was concerning in Ran's personal opinion. "I… I was thinking. We should hang out. Without the rest."

"What do you… _oh_." Realisation dawned on Tomoe as she deciphered what Ran was trying to hint at. As much as Ran clashed with Yukina, the latter had a point. She had to put in effort if she wanted to end up with Tomoe outside of her project. "I-I… well… I'm totally up for that. Like, super stoked!"

"Great." A silence descended upon them, making Ran fidget awkwardly. Was she supposed to follow up? Or was she supposed to walk away? Ran didn't know, and wished that Kaoru- actually no, Kaoru sucked big time at romance. Just witnessing her being a hot mess with Kanon was enough to tell her that she should seek help elsewhere. "So… I'll message you."

"That'll be awesome!" Tomoe was about to walk away, but paused. She turned back to face Ran, wearing a confident smirk on her face as she lit up one of her many glow sticks. "You got this Ran, out posh the rest!"

"Hmph, I won't settle for anything less." Ran promised, regretting it seconds later. How was she going to beat Chisato mega-elegant Shirasagi? There was something about that actress that radiated elegance, even though she was shorter than average. Tomoe grinned, satisfied with Ran's promise and left to join the audience. "... How did I do?"

"Wonderfully! I have to say, I'm impressed at your courage!" Kaoru marvelled at Ran's composure, revealing that she had never really left the area. Not that she didn't wish to, but Misaki had tasked her to observe Ran's interactions with Tomoe so as to further their project. There was only two months left after all, they needed all the ideas they could get. "If you need assistance, I'll be delighted to provide you with respectable ideas for a marvelous date!"

"Oh, leave her alone will you Kaoru?" Chisato scoffed, stepping out of the changing room wearing a black party dress. She had expected more, but the Theatre department (which provided the costumes for both events) insisted that simple was the way to go. "Ran-chan, don't listen to her. She knows _nothing_ about dating."

"Wasn't really planning to."

"How you both wound me, I would never dream of ruining her chances with Tomoe." Chisato rolled her eyes, a playful smile threatening to spill to Ran (and whoever else was present) that Kaoru had constantly begged her for advice regarding Kanon. "Now off you go Ran, all of us can't wait to see you shine on stage!"

"What, no kind words for me?" Chisato faked a pout, her violet eyes hiding her intentions. "Maybe I should tell Kanon-"

"A-And you too Chisato, may the best kitten win!" Kaoru promptly left the area, leaving a stunned Ran in her wake. Chisato smirked, pleased to know that she still had a hold over Kaoru. Ran said nothing, ignoring the shivers trailing down her spine after witnessing the… friendship Kaoru and Chisato shared.

"It's about time we make our way to the stage, may the best woman win." Chisato commented, leaving Ran alone backstage as she made her way to the stage, where many of their competitors were waiting. Ran blinked, unable to process how right Misaki was by saying that Chisato made the perfect bitchy girlfriend to not-Tomoe.

_'I should really be concerned that a real life bitch is literally right in front of me.'_

* * *

"Huh? You wanna bring Tomoe-chan on a date? That's boppin' and all, but what does it have to do with _me_?" Hina asked, twirling her braids as she hugged a cat plush toy that Tsugumi had won for her during one of their arcade dates. The cat reminded Ran of Hina, both of them looked like they would say 'boppin'' at any second and they both had teal hair (fur in the toy's case).

"I don't know, I was thinking you could loan me some animals for a date."

"Being a vet student doesn't mean that we get to keep 'em though. Why not bring her to somewhere more boppin'? Like Hanasakigawa Smile Land!"

"That was what I suggested to Okusawa-san, but she just gave me this blank stare." Ran wondered if it had anything to do with the fact that she worked part-time at the amusement park. As Michelle no less. Hina laughed, seemingly finding the whole situation funny.

"Okay okay, I think I can steal Leon for you! Tomoe-chan looks like the type that likes dogs!"

"I'm looking at ending the date with seeing the sun's afterglow, not at a police station."

"You're boring." Ran shook her head, it was a mistake to approach Hina after all. Hell, even _Kaoru_ was a better option, and that said a lot about Ran's desperation. "Anyhoo, I actually have two tickets to Smile Land and I wanna give it away!"

"Go use it and bring Tsugumi there."

"Already did, these are extras." Hina pulled out two crisp tickets from her pocket, waving it in front of Ran. Ran sighed heavily, snatching the tickets out of Hina's hand and stuffing it in her pocket. "Make sure to end off the date with a kiss on the Ferris Wheel!"

"W-We're not dating!"

"Yet!"

* * *

"So… you want us to follow Ran and Tomoe around during their date?" Lisa asked, with her girlfriend nodding. Since Misaki was on shift on the day Ran and Tomoe were planning to have their date at the amusement park, she couldn't follow around the couple. Kaoru was busy with her own projects, and had declined the request to follow Ran. That left Yukina, who was the only one free within the group. "Yukina, what about your projects?"

"I'll just do them before the deadline."

"Oh come on Yukina… You do realise that it's this attitude that forced you to repeat this module right?"

"I can't let Mitake-san go through a trainwreck of a date without someone to capture the details down." Kaoru and Misaki nodded in agreement, they needed material for their story regardless of the outcome of the date.

" _Thanks_." Ran seethed, did her group really have no faith in her? Lisa glanced at the four women, sighing reluctantly. She really couldn't say no to Yukina, and she had a feeling that her girlfriend knew it. "Great, now I have two stalkers."

"It's just for the project, and it's not like we're going to put in every single detail." Misaki replied, they _did_ edit out some details from Ran's experiences. Misaki even changed the characters' names despite not being obliged to! Kaoru hummed in agreement, while Yukina simply made a face that implied that she _wanted_ every single detail of Ran's romantic journey on paper. "Just be yourself on your date with Tomoe-san and it'll be fine."

"Yeah but… what do I do with her? Usually Moca and Himari are the ones starting conversations… and Tsugumi's there to keep the mood going." Ran sighed, she had never really hung out with just Tomoe. Even when it really was just them, there wasn't the pressure of it being a date looming over her. "What if I fuck things up and ruin the mood between us? You guys know that we clash a lot…"

"Hmm… This might not be the best idea for you, but I think compromising can help smooth things out a little." Lisa offered, aware that due to Ran's and Tomoe's stubbornness, trivial disagreements could somehow escalate to the near dissolution of their decade-long friendship. "You may not agree with her point of view, but at least show her that you're willing to consider it."

"I… I think I can do that." Ran knew she couldn't, she couldn't see past anything that wasn't in line with her view. But for Tomoe… Tomoe never steered Afterglow wrong. That was something Ran was aware of, even though she didn't necessarily agree with the ways Tomoe got around to her end. "Anything else?"

"Compliments can do _wonders_! Everyone loves it when someone notices their efforts, and I'm sure Tomoe isn't an exception!"

"Kaoru-san has a point, complimenting can go a long way. Hell, I'm pretty sure Hagumi would've dumped me if I didn't notice how she always styled her hair whenever we go on dates, or when she wears the socks that she bought on our first date."

"Uh Misaki, I really doubt Hagumi would dump you. She's practically swooning over you." Lisa pointed out, a fact that was backed up by the last time they had met on campus. Lisa remembered how much Hagumi talked about Misaki, and not a single one of them was about breaking up. "I mean, Yukina never compliments me but I'm still with her!"

"... Your hair looks pretty today?" Yukina feebly replied, realising that Lisa was using the current topic of conversation to tell her what she wanted from their relationship. If anything, their relationship was the most at risk of breaking down. Lisa shook her head in disappointment, which made Yukina panic harder than she was already panicking. "U-Um… your lipstick is shinier than usual?"

"Anyways Mitake-san, as long as you don't end up like Minato-san, you're good to go on your date." Misaki concluded, trying her hardest to not laugh at how hard Yukina was trying to appease Lisa, who was apparently being passive-aggressive towards her girlfriend. _'I wonder how long has Lisa-san being feeling this way…?'_

"... I just want things to be the same as always."

* * *

"Whoa, check out that roller coaster Ran!" Tomoe pointed to a roller coaster that was making a deathly drop before making a few loops, screams being heard every four (yes, Ran counted) seconds. "We should ride that one!

"Mm." Ran nodded her head, she didn't really mind scary roller coasters. Now if it were scary haunted houses… Ran would refuse faster than Tomoe could finish it. Good thing Tomoe hate scary things like her, only Moca enjoyed such things among Afterglow. "... Do you want to take a picture with a mascot?"

"Oh, that sounds like a great idea! Who do you have in mind?" Ran pointed to a pink bear, who was taking pictures with children. "Aw snap! You caught a Michelle!"

"... I guess?" She didn't know what Tomoe meant by catching Michelle when she was literally right there, forced to entertain people until her shift was over. They approached Michelle, with Tomoe smiling broadly at the bear. "Can we take a picture with you Michelle?"

"Sure." Ran blinked, that didn't sound like Misaki. Tomoe didn't notice, and handed her phone to one of the staff members (which was just one of Kokoro's many bodyguards). Regardless of who was inside, Ran could tell that they just wanted to be out of Michelle. She didn't blame them, it was stuffy and hot despite the November temperature. The picture was taken, and Tomoe's phone was returned. "Have a nice day at Smile Land~"

 _'Geez, whoever's inside Michelle sounds just as dead as Okusawa-san…'_ Ran thought to herself as they made their way towards the queue for the roller coaster that Tomoe had pointed out a while ago. It was a long queue, which meant that they had to wait for a while before they could ride. "Oh right Tomoe, did you settle the details for our fundraiser live?"

"Yup, just gotta confirm with Poppin'Party if they wanna open for us."

"Kasumi still hasn't contacted you about it?"

"Nope, I was thinking of finding Saya if Kasumi doesn't reply by next week."

"You'll have better luck finding Ichigaya-san, lately I see her in the dorms."

"Oh speaking of her, I heard from Moca that she had a project about plant bondage." Ran made a face, she remembered how she witnessed Rei invented plant bondage as an excuse to kidnap Kasumi. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing, just thinking about how Wakana-san invented that shit."

"Who's that?"

"Remember RAS's live a while back?" Tomoe nodded, RAS wore either bandanas, cloth eye patches or cloth simply around the neck during that live. There were rumours that one of the RAS members was obsessed with a certain ninja with cool eye powers, hence the reason behind their last minute getup. "So you noticed the bassist right?"

"Oh totally, her vocals were outta this world."

"That's Wakana-san. AKA Hanazono-san's newest girlfriend."

"Did she even have a girlfriend prior to her current one though?"

"Doesn't matter, _she's_ the one who invented plant bondage." Ran shuddered, how could anyone even think that plant bondage was a legitimate thing? She had overestimated Kasumi's common sense. "Also from what I hear, she's a dork."

"Don't they call it gap moe?"

"... Probably not." It was finally their turn at the ride, and once they were locked securely in their seats, Ran realised that Michelle sounded suspiciously like Rei. _'Hmm, I doubt it. Why would anyone apart from Okusawa-san work as a mascot?'_

* * *

"We've taken a lot of pictures, should we head back?" Lisa asked Yukina, who shrugged in response. To be fair, Misaki didn't say whether to leave after they had determined that the date was successful or to see it through the end. "Aw, but I wanna take a picture with Michelle too!"

"We can always ask Okusawa-san to dress up for us back on campus."

"Yeah, but this is an amusement park! We can afford to leave them to their date!"

"... But what do I do at amusement parks…?"

"You have fun, silly. What can be more fun than having a date at an amusement park with your childhood friend who's also your girlfriend?"

"Composing lyrics with you in an air-conditioned room." Yukina deadpanned, how was feeling sticky a fun activity? Lisa sighed, clearly regretting her decision to date Yukina. Yukina gulped, was she supposed to follow up with a romantic response? Then again, Lisa liked her because of her honesty… right? "Um… I see Michelle over there?"

"Really? Where?" Yukina pointed to Michelle, who removed her own head shortly after. "... Oof, I feel sorry for the kids who had to see that."

"Was Okusawa-san's hair always that long?" Yukina asked, referring to the length of the woman's hair. Her hair was black just like Misaki's, but Yukina couldn't shake the feeling that the hair length was different than what she saw during their discussions.

"... How is it that you notice the length of Misaki's hair but never say anything whenever I doll up my hair for you?" Lisa groaned, trust Yukina to notice everything but her. "But yeah, her hair's not supposed to be that long."

"Let's ambush her." Lisa wanted to protest, but Yukina was already sneaking up to the mascot. Sighing, Lisa stealthily followed Yukina's lead. Soon, Yukina sprang on Michelle while Lisa swept the mascot's legs, bringing the bear down with a loud thud. She turned to her girlfriend, a proud smile on her face that reminded Lisa of a cat that had successfully caught a crisp leaf and was bringing back to its owner. "Lisa, I caught a fake Michelle for you."

"... Or Okusawa-san's on break and I'm subbing for her." The woman in the suit weakly replied, having experienced first-hand to the phrase 'the bigger they are, the harder they fall'. Yukina and Lisa glanced at each other, slowly backing away from the woman who was apparently _not_ Misaki. "For fuck's sake Minato-san, help me up!"

"How do you know who am I?"

"CHUCHU." Both members of Roselia blinked, how did those two terms had any relation to them. "You refused CHUCHU's offer to be your producer?"

"... Oh. Right. You're their bassist."

"Yeah, now help me up?" Lisa obliged Rei's request, helping her up to a sitting position. Rei sighed, she had a long shift as her roommate decided to take an extended break without consulting her about it. That was the first and last time she was agreeing to sub for the DJ. "Thanks, so why did you two attack me?"

"Yeah Yukina, why _did_ you wanna attack her?" Lisa echoed the question, expecting an answer from Yukina. Yukina said nothing, about to run away had it not been for the fact that Lisa prevented her from doing so. "Don't run away."

"Fine, I attacked her because I wanted to stick up for the children who had their vision of Michelle ruined by her."

"... I'm not sure whether to believe you or not but okay I guess?" Rei muttered, reaching out for Michelle's head. She propped the head back on top of her, resuming her identity as Michelle. "It's everybody's favourite Michelle~! Do you lovely ladies want a picture with me?"

"Now that I've been scarred for life, I'm not sure if I _want_ one now."

"Shush Yukina, you don't but I still do."

* * *

"So… Tomoe. Did you have fun?" Ran and Tomoe were now inside a Ferris Wheel cabin while waiting for the sun to set. Ran didn't really see the point of riding in the Ferris Wheel, but all her friends told her that it was romantic and private. Well, private for a few minutes at least.

"Yup! I'm so glad you invited me!" Tomoe replied enthusiastically, making Ran blush in the process. She could never get over how Tomoe's smile was enough to drive her up a wall, in a good kind of way of course. "Oh yeah, are you attending the Christmas party?"

"You mean my dorm's? I don't know, but Sayo-san mentioned that she was one of the organisers so I _think_ it should be safe." Ran commented, omitting the part where Kokoro and Hina were also organising the event. The lesser she remembered, the better. "What about your dorm? Himari mentioned that she wanted to plan it right?"

"Ah… We did a survey and found out that everyone except us are going back home. Turns out that everyone have their classes on Christmas cancelled."

"Us too, I suspect that the lecturers are the ones who want to go home or just use the day as an excuse to not deal with us." Tomoe chuckled, that may explain why her lecturers told her to leave them alone during Christmas week. "You know, you two can join our dorm party. I doubt Sayo-san minds, and she could use you to help her out."

"Hmm, I should text her later then! Maybe she's okay with Himari helping out, the more the merrier!" Ran nodded in agreement, she recalled how much Himari wanted to plan a Christmas party with her new friends in college. She wouldn't admit that she was jealous, Himari had every right to make friends after all. "By the way Ran, how's your project coming along?"

"It's… fine?"

"You sure? You gotta tell me if Minato-san pulls some weird shit on you."

"Rivalry aside, we're actually more similar than I had expected." Tomoe smiled, relieved that Ran was doing fine with her group. "... So um… the sunset's pretty nice huh?"

"It's… the same as always?"

"R-Right, same as always is good." Ran knew that she should do something, but she didn't know _what_. Was she supposed to kiss Tomoe? Was it really okay for her to just kiss her without any pretext? Ran didn't know, she didn't expect her date to be _that_ successful and now she was panicking over it. Thank god that Tomoe seemed content to just be near her, the last thing she wanted was to ruin the mood. "... Oh, we're about to reach the ground."

"... Ah. You're right." Ran detected a twinge of disappointment in Tomoe's words, but she wasn't sure how she should remedy it. Or if she should even do anything to not make her words sound so curt. The Ferris Wheel shuddered to a brief stop, its speed slowly increasing as park-goers got off and on the ride. Tomoe was the first to step out of the cabin, a hand extended to Ran. "Watch your step Ran."

"... Thanks Tomoe." Ran wanted to protest that she wasn't as fragile as to need someone to help her get off the cabin, but she could almost hear Misaki yelling at her to just accept the damn offer because it was romantic and Ran needed to do more romantic activities if she ever wanted to date Tomoe. Her inner Misaki proved to be right as Tomoe hummed joyfully, a tinge of red dusting her cheeks as she led Ran out of the cabin. "Do you want to head back?"

"Sure, it's getting late anyways. And Himari's actually spamming me for help." Tomoe chuckled, holding up her phone for Ran to see. There were 78 messages from Himari and 24 missed calls from her. "I already told her beforehand that I'm with you but she probably forgot."

_'Note to self, strongly word it to Himari that this is supposed to be a date and not a time for her to SOS Tomoe.'_

* * *

"Good news, we're almost done. Which is considered a miracle since we still have a month left." Misaki announced, wincing as a crash was heard in the background. It was Christmas Eve. The rest of her group breathed a sigh of relief, it hadn't been easy for them. The story was coming along nicely, save for the kiss the two main characters were supposed to share. "Please tell me that was just my imagination."

"Nope, that was the sound of Tsurumaki-san dropping the decorations." Ran replied, stretching her arms. She was both surprised and impressed that they could fill in the blanks when Ran wasn't creating real life material for the project. "Is the breakup between not-Tomoe and not-Chisato really impactful though?"

"We've staged a real life breakup so that Misaki can breathe life into our project! The impact's certainly fleeting!" Ran rolled her eyes, how could she forget? In order to make their story as convincing as possible, they had asked Lisa, Chisato and Yukina to act as the characters for the breakup. Lisa was a convincing Tomoe, most likely because Moca constantly talked about the drummer. Chisato was nothing short of professional, and the stinging slap delivered onto Lisa's cheek was enough to get Yukina worked up to hurl passionate insults. In short, everything went perfectly.

"... Okay, but I'm pretty sure Minato-san's pretty bad when it comes to consoling. You know, even more so than me."

"Right, I didn't tell you guys. I got my roommate and Ichigaya-san to help out for that part, it was funny as hell." Misaki answered, referring to how shortly after the staged breakup, she got Rei and Arisa to act in that particular scene. Misaki didn't hope for much back then, but thanks to the surprising friendship the two Horticulture majors shared, it worked out rather well. "I had to drastically change the content but it was too funny."

"How so?"

"Instead of consoling Wakana-san about breaking up, Ichigaya-san consoled her over the loss of her favourite rope."

"... What's the rope used for?"

"Oh thank god you asked that Minato-san." Ran let out a breath she didn't know she had been holding, she was too scared to ask why did Rei even had a favourite rope. Kaoru seemed none the wiser, genuinely believing that the rope was used for innocent purposes. Misaki scoffed, that wasn't a good sign.

"Let's just say that Wakana-san likes a more… general branch of plant bondage." Ran and Yukina shuddered in horror, they had learnt too much and wished to forget whatever they had just heard. Kaoru's eyebrows were knitted in confusion, was it a pun based on Rei's major? She didn't understand, and none of her group members were willing to enlighten her. "Anyways Mitake-san, all you need to do now is to find a chance to _actually_ kiss Tomoe-san."

"What if I fuck-"

"Listen to your heart my dear Ran! What is it telling you to do?"

"That I should go back to my dorm room and cry?" Kaoru sighed, shaking her head dramatically. Misaki and Yukina facepalmed, why was that even an option at that point? Ran crossed her arms, an indignant look flashing on her face. "What?! Shirokane-san puts a blanket on me and that hideous Afterglow mascot on my table when I cry, got a problem with that?!"

"Now I want to ask her for some blackmail stories."

"Don't you dare." Ran growled, to which Yukina smirked. Misaki groaned as the two vocalists wrestled for dominance on the floor, ignoring the broken decorations on the floor. "I only cry because of the tearjerkers damn it!"

"Are you sure it's not because of your repressed high school angst?"

"Like hell you don't have any!"

"Moving on… Kaoru-san, do you think you can stage it such that those two will kiss?" Misaki asked, the best solution she could come up with was to force the two women to kiss. Kaoru pondered over Misaki's request, before shaking her head in resignation. "That much of a lost cause?"

"Misaki, you really need to start having faith in them." Kaoru countered, a wistful smile on her face as she watched Yukina and Ran screaming at each other. Misaki groaned, how was she supposed to have faith when both women didn't make any moves on each other ever since their last date. To think their last date was two weeks ago at a ramen place, there were so many opportunities for them to kiss in an hour alone. "What about you? Do you have any ideas perhaps?"

"Hmm…" Kokoro had dropped another decoration, five more and Sayo would demand compensation. Compensation that Kokoro was more than willing to give, but Sayo would rather have her learn to not break things on a whim than the monetary aspect. Hagumi laughed, warning Kokoro to be more careful while accidentally toppling the tree used for Christmas. "I have an idea."

"Pray tell Misaki, speak!"

"Let's go help Kokoro and Hagumi clean up the mess, then we find Sayo-san."

"Sayo? Whatever for?"

"Permission to carry out my request, and to do that we need to put her in a good mood." Misaki said, barely avoiding getting herself trapped by the lights that was supposed to go around the tree. "Will you two _stop_ making my life difficult?!"

* * *

"Ran! Rocking party you guys have here!" Tomoe greeted as she stepped into the dorm hall, avoiding Kokoro who was swinging from balcony to balcony. "... Is she allowed to be Tarzan?"

"We try not to think about it." Ran shrugged, it really was in their best interests to not think about the danger Kokoro posed to the attendees. Himari yelped in surprise as she was treated to a view of Kokoro's panties. "Oh Himari, I didn't notice you there."

"You're so mean Ran!" Himari pouted, nearly getting herself knocked down by Hagumi and Kasumi, who was running around the area as fast as possible. "Sayo-san allowed all this?"

"Nah, onee-chan kinda gave up on us~" Hina replied, jumping down from nowhere and landing perfectly on her feet. "Glad that you can join us you guys!"

"Oh, Hii-chan and Tomo-chin are here~ Merry Christmas~" Moca lazily made her way towards her friends, with Tsugumi following closely behind. "Now, the first thing you gotta do is to head for the makeout points yeah?"

"Yeppers! We hung mistletoe in nice cosy places where you two can have wild sex and _no one_ will ever know!" Hina joined in, grinning proudly at her handiwork. Ran and Tomoe blushed furiously, while Himari was appropriately shocked. Tsugumi, on the other hand, was aware that the mistletoe was really for Tomoe and Ran and as such, didn't comment about it. "So! Who wants to start sledding in here?"

"Hina, _no_. I told you that sledding isn't allowed." Sayo warned, having just woken up from her nap. She had hoped that the dorm residents would limit the volume to a minimum but alas, her hopes were dashed. "Good evening Tomoe-san and Uehara-san, you may place your coats… well, anywhere since I predict _someone_ would spike the provided drinks with alcohol and the whole night would be thrown into chaos."

"It ain't me honey." Moca pointed out, with Sayo raising an eyebrow doubtfully. "No, for reals though. Moca-chan's not the one who spiked the drinks."

"It hasn't been an hour since the party officially started?!"

"Sayo-saaaaaaan! I upgraded the drinks you provided! Now this party will be so fun and everyone will remember how the dark angel descended on us!" Ako ran up to Sayo, waving about an incriminating piece of evidence. AKA vodka, the really cheap kind. "Hi onee-chan! You're finally here!"

"Okay, who the fuck provided Udagawa-san with 'upgrades'?!" Sayo yelled, murder raging in her eyes as she stormed off to find the mastermind. Tomoe sighed, prying the bottle away from her dear sister and tossing it at Kokoro, who was still swinging about. The drummer knew that she should be more concerned about Kokoro, but her top priority was to find out who made Ako their accomplice.

"Hey uh, Ako? Where did you get the vodka from?" Tomoe asked, with Ako shrugging in response. "Ako, lying is bad remember?"

"It's Michelle… but I don't think Misaki-san's _inside_ the suit? She's supposed to be responsible right?" Tomoe sighed, her sister had a point. She couldn't imagine Misaki doing something so irresponsible, plus she wasn't the type to break the law as not everyone was 20 yet.

 _'... I wouldn't put it past Okusawa-san… now where is she…?'_ Ran scanned the crowd, her eyes falling on a pink stubby tail that disappeared into the crowd. "Get that bear!"

"You ladies heard her, now let's capture Michelle! Hey, hey, hoh!" Himari chanted, with Tomoe and Ran running off to catch Michelle. Moca, Tsugumi, Hina and Ako said nothing, smiling innocently in response. "Oh c'mon you guys! Don't make me look stupid!"

"Oh~? You mean that you know your catchphrase is stupid? Hii-chan's smart~"

"Stop mocking me!"

* * *

"Damn, that bear sure can run…" Tomoe grumbled, collapsing onto the floor. Ran panted heavily, she didn't expect Misaki to be so agile with the suit on. Clearly, she had underestimated the DJ. "There's no one here…"

"Yeah, no one really comes to this part of the dorm…" They were resting near the stairwell that led up to the rooftop, which was locked in the winter as there had been many incidents of residents getting locked out due to the lock freezing from the outside. "On the bright side, it's really quiet."

"And calming." Tomoe added, both of them chuckling at the comment. Silence fell on them, neither knew how to continue the conversation. Or to start a new one, they were both socially awkward in their own ways. "... Y'know, Moca said something interesting last week."

"Oh yeah?"

"She said that your group's writing a romcom?" Ran froze, why the hell did Moca think that it was a good idea to reveal to Tomoe, her fucking _crush_ , that her group was writing a romcom? Better question, why last week of all times? Moca could definitely revealed it after they had submitted the story in January, so why a week before Christmas? "Ran? Are you okay? Do you need my sweater because you look cold."

"I'm good, thanks." Ran mumbled back, taking a seat next to Tomoe. The floor was colder than expected, and Ran could've sworn seeing some dust fly. _'Really hoping that's just my imagination…'_

"If you say so." Tomoe decided that it was best to not point out that Ran was shivering, the last thing she wanted was to get slapped. Then again, the last time Ran slapped someone for that particular reason, it was Moca and for tickling Ran. "You guys know how to write one?"

"Eh, just a little bit."

"Hm. She also said something else."

"Hopefully nothing embarrassing."

"Moca said that your group's basing some of our friends' love lives into the project." Ran had never wanted to murder Moca more than she did then, she might as well tell Tomoe that the romcom was supposed to be based off Ran's experiences. "Ran? You sure you're okay? You literally froze up."

"Moca's a shit and she's trying to stir trouble."

"... But is she telling the truth?"

"... No comment."

"Haha, I'll take that as a yes." Tomoe nudged Ran's shoulder, a playful grin on her lips as Ran made a noise in protest. "Real talk though, is it helping you guys?"

"Surprisingly… yeah. It's working." Ran remembered the way Misaki's eyes lit up in delight as Ran brought back more material for her to use. Sure, there were a few parts that they had to come up on their own, but the storyline was coherent enough. "... Tomoe?"

"Yeah?"

"I-" This was finally the moment Ran was seeking for, and she wasn't going to ignore it. Too bad she was interrupted before she could actually confess. _'This is definitely a sign that I shouldn't confess.'_

"Did you hang the mistletoe at the creepy stairs leading up to the roof?!" Ran was pretty sure that was Hina, and just how close was she in order for her to hear it? A small part of her was thankful for the interruption though, she was ultimately still scared that she would ruin whatever they had and be the reason for Afterglow's disbanding.

"Yeah! Now couples have an excuse to kiss there!" Ran blinked, was that Ako? She turned to face Tomoe, who was just as confused as her. Ran could detect a flicker of anger in Tomoe's eyes, probably due to the revelation that her younger sister wasn't as innocent as she had believed. That anger was gone as it came, and Ran decided to not ask Tomoe about it. "I'm pretty sure I hung it at that dusty stairwell!"

"... Hey Ran, aren't we sitting on a dusty stairwell?" Tomoe asked, with Ran nodding her head slowly. They looked up, their eyes widening at the sight of the mistletoe. "Aaaaaaaand we found it."

"Yup." Was this _the_ moment? Was Ran able to kiss Tomoe and upgrade their relationship status to girlfriends? Or would she fail and ruin everything she cherished? "We… we don't have to kiss if you don't want to."

"... But what if I wanna?" Tomoe's question was barely a whisper, her hand placed on top of Ran's. Ran knew what she had to do, however she couldn't trust herself to go through it. "Do… do you want to?"

"I… gladly." Ran steeled herself, leaning closer to Tomoe's lips as she focused on _not_ smashing her head against Tomoe's. They were now barely a centimetre apart, and Ran wasn't sure if she should just go for it or wait for Tomoe to close the gap between them. Thankfully for her, Tomoe took initiative and pressed her lips against Ran's. It was forceful, but Ran didn't mind. _'Huh, to think our teeth didn't clash… Pretty good for a first kiss.'_

"S-Sorry, I was nervous…" They broke apart, with Tomoe revealing that she was aware of the forceful kiss they shared. Ran mumbled something in response, her words obscured by her hand that was covering a furious blush. "What did you just say?"

"I said that I love you." Now it was Tomoe's turn to freeze in place, her mind short-circuiting with this revelation. Ran feared for the worst when Tomoe didn't respond after a minute had passed, or was it ten? She quickly pulled out her phone, not caring about whether it was even appropriate for her to do so.

**[Super Fucked Lit Team]**

_**[8.32 PM]** _

**LitFlower:** Guys I have a problem

 **Yukinya:** You always do

 **Haka-no:** isn't everything going smoothly?

 **Mii-kun:** yeah ur kissing tomoe

 **LitFlower:** Ignoring the part that you shouldn't know that, what should I do now?

 **Haka-no:** wait for her to respond

 **Yukinya:** Or just kiss her again

 **Mii-kun:** this is a romcom, no kissing until they r dating now

 **Haka-no:** yes think about the trust!

 **Yukinya:** I like my option better

 **LitFlower:** Where exactly are you guys anyways

 **Mii-kun:** near enough to be transcribing wht ur doing

"Do you mean it Ran?" Said woman raised her head, her attention forced away from her phone and onto Tomoe, who was blushing up to the tips of her ears. Ran nodded, understanding that it was probably best to keep quiet. "I love you too actually. Like, really head over heels for you kinda love. God, I should probably shut up now."

"No, don't shut up. I-I mean, yes shut up but like by kissing?" Ran wanted to crawl into a hole, how the hell could she be so awkward? Not even her roommate was that awkward. Tomoe chuckled lightly, indulging Ran by pressing her lips against Ran's. _'I should be more awkward often.'_

"Ooh Misaki-chan, is that the romcom that's based off those two?" The two women hurriedly broke apart, shocked by the sudden voice. A sharp hiss was heard nearby, followed by boisterous laughter. "Whoops, sorry!"

"Hina-san, will you shut up?! I did _not_ risk my hide setting up the mistletoe for those two useless lesbians!"

"Ran, why didn't you say that your project's based off us?" Ran said nothing, abruptly standing up and fleeing seconds later. "Hey! Ran!"

* * *

"Ran!" It was New Year's Eve, and Ran hadn't talked to Tomoe about the fact that her project was based on her own experiences. Needless to say, she was dreading the topic. "Check out the script you guys did!"

"What script?" Ran knew what Tomoe was talking about, but she was fairly sure that Misaki hadn't sent it to their lecturer yet. Tomoe had a toothy grin as she prodded Ran with a thick stack of papers, which Ran glanced at in disbelief. "No way."

"Yeah! Okusawa-san gave me the hardcopy after she submitted it to her lecturer! I'm actually on my way to bind them."

"You want to _bind_ them?!"

"Why not? It's a great story, and I'm damn flattered by it!"

"You've _read_ it?!"

"Oh don't worry, she omitted our names!" Ran glanced at the names of the main characters, naming them Ren and Tomo was basically as good as using their actual names in their story. Tomoe didn't seem to have the same concerns as Ran judging from her joyful expression.

"That's the least of my worries!" Ran needed to have a talk with Misaki very soon, and by extension Yukina and Kaoru. Shouldn't they at least allow her to vet through the script? Whatever happened to group effort?

"It's okay! They added your name! Look, it's the first one!" Tomoe pointed to the first page, with Ran's name being the first mentioned. "See?"

"Oh." Ran wondered if she should be concerned that she cared more about whether her contribution was recorded down than the fact that the story was all about her trying to romance Tomoe. "... I guess everything's fine then…"

"Yup! Now I get to read a good book written by my girlfriend!"

 _'Actually Okusawa-san wrote most of it…'_ Ran thought to herself before shrugging it off. So what if Misaki was the one who wrote it? She contributed to a lot of experiences, so to hell with Misaki. "You really liked it?"

"Definitely!" There it was again, Tomoe had the talent of dazzling Ran with that toothy grin of hers. She secretly found it adorable that Tomoe didn't know how Afterglow was practically putty whenever she smiled, especially since Himari and Moca mentioned it often. "Hey uh… Ran?"

"Hm?"

"So… Ako _kinda_ brought back a dog and I… well, I was wondering if you wanna walk her with me sometime soon?"

"Is this a date?" Tomoe blushed furiously, her hand unconsciously rubbing the back of her neck. "And what do you mean 'kinda'?"

"Okay okay, she _definitely_ brought back a dog." Tomoe admitted, rubbing the back of her neck sheepishly as Ran crossed her arms. Normally, people would be intimidated by Ran's gesture but Tomoe knew that she was just making herself comfortable. Plus it gave her a good view of Ran's assets, not that Tomoe would reveal such details to the vocalist so early into their relationship. "So… wanna walk her with me?"

"Sure, does tomorrow evening work for you?"

"First day of the year huh?" Ran nodded, they could probably squeeze in an evening walk after visiting the shrine. Hopefully there won't be many people at the park, Ran thought to herself. "Y'know what? Let's do it! We can go after visiting the shrine!"

"My thoughts exactly." Ran replied, smirking slightly as she pulled Tomoe closer towards her before pressing a kiss to her cheek. "Oh right, Moca said that they'll be counting down at our dorm."

"Heh, I'll be there. I gotta go drop something off at Sato-san's room, felt bad for holding onto it for so long." With that, Tomoe left the area they were in, but not forgetting to wink at Ran before leaving completely. Ran let out a screech of embarrassment, sinking deeper into her chair as a result.

_'Can't believe I'm saying this, but basing the story on my life actually worked out for me. Maybe I should ask Tsugumi to help me bake something for those three troublemakers…'_


End file.
